Recently, as electronic apparatuses have had higher functions, electronic components used therein have been demanded to have performance capable of corresponding to a high frequency range. For example, it is essential that a capacitor used as a bypass capacitor or a decoupling capacitor in a high frequency circuit should have a higher resonance frequency and a larger capacity. In order to obtain a higher resonance frequency, it is essential to reduce the equivalent series inductance (to lower ESL) of a capacitor. In particular, a decoupling capacitor used for CPU with significantly high performance is required to have performance capable of rapidly supplying a large electric power. In order to satisfy the requirement of such a high-speed operation, it is important to lower ESL of the capacitor.
A conventional capacitor excellent in high-frequency property is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 2002-299152. On both ends of the disclosed ceramic capacitor, positive electrode terminals and negative electrode terminals are arranged alternately, thereby reducing ESL. In addition, a multilayer ceramic capacitor in which respective electrode terminals are arranged alternately in a matrix so as to reduce the inductance to lower ESL, is known. Such a capacitor is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 2001-189234. Such capacitors have a devised electrode structure so that magnetic fields induced by electric current flowing in the capacitor can cancel each other. Furthermore, electric current path length in each of the electrode is shortened. The synergistic effect thereof reduces ESL.
However, since such a capacitor has a configuration in which the shape of internal electrodes and configuration of terminal electrodes are complicated, the capacity becomes smaller and the productivity is deteriorated.